Elton John

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973)

1.Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding
2.Candle in the Wind
3.Bennie and the Jets
4.Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
5.This Song has no Title
6.Grey Seal
7.Jamaica Jerk-Off
8.I've Seen that Movie Too
9.Sweet Painted Lady
10.The Ballad of Danny Bailey (1909-1934)
11.Dirty Little Girl
12.All the Girls Love Alice
13.Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll)
14.Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting
15.Roy Rogers
16.Social Disease
17.Harmony

T he ultimate Elton John CD. No question. Whereas many debate and have differences in tastes, most will agree this is one is the best of the best in his catalog. For starters, it's superior in volume. Whereas the original album was a double record set, it can now be fit comfortably on one compact disc, giving the buyer more bang for their buck. All of this would be inconsequential if the material were not superb, which it undoubtedly proves.

There are many tracks that most casual fans will recognize. Bennie and the Jets, Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting, the original studio version of Candle in the Wind and of course, the title track. These are only meant to whet our appetites. Also included is the fan favorite medley of Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding as well as Harmony which closes the CD.

From there we have a mass collection of styles that seem to flow beautifully. For hard rock, there's Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n Roll) and the raw and raunchy All the Girls Love Alice. Sentimental softer tunes include Sweet Painted Lady and I've Seen that Movie Too. For a bit of nostalgia there's the touching Roy Rogers and the ode to a fictitious gangster The Ballad of Danny Bailey. Elton gives his piano a good beating on This Song has no Title and a remake of an earlier number of his, Grey Seal. We even get a funny little reggae piece called Jamaica Jerk Off.

If you had to say anything negative about this one, it could be said that Bernie's lyrics ten to be misogynistic as in Social Disease and the CD's only dog Dirty Little Girl. It's a small slap on the wrist. Other than the many greatest hits collections that have been released, this one should be your first choice if you're a new fan.

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